OPEN CALL

INVERSE 2021

After a year of exploring how best to continue INVERSE’s mission of building a performance art community and supporting artists and their processes, we’ve developed a new 8-month residency program that will enable artists to pursue their practices while in conversation with a cohort of similarly motivated artists with support and mentorship from the INVERSE team. The program will culminate in an artist led symposium in person at the Momentary in December 2021. 

This program is centered around our desire to build and uphold support structures for artists looking for community, critical feedback, and connection. 

We’ve combined many of our methods from 2020 - our lab series, residencies, and festival model, into a 8 month program to support a cohort of artists in their creative practices through a series of private and public offerings. By adopting this methodology, we hope to help give you as artists what you need - whether that is community and conversation, a platform for public performance and presentation or intimate dialogues and relationship with other artists. 

The work in 2021 will culminate in an artist-led symposium. INVERSE will work with the cohort to develop a public program that aligns with the mission of the platform. 

About the program:

INVERSE will accept up to 8 artists for the 2021 cohort. Applications will open at 12:00pm CT on March 15, 2021 and close at 11:59pm CT on Friday, April 30, 2021. The program will primarily be held online, with the exception of an in person symposium in December 2021. Each artist will be expected to lead one workshop and one artist talk as well as participate in an end of the year symposium. The workshop and artist talk will be online offerings to be scheduled between the artist and INVERSE. These workshops will be attended by the other artists in the cohort and will be open to the public at the discretion of the artist and the workshop’s capacities and needs. The artist talk will be public facing, and can be developed however the artist deems appropriate. The end of the year symposium will take place in person at the Momentary in Bentonville, Arkansas in December 2021, pending any additional unknowns or changes due to COVID-19. The symposium will be developed by the cohort and participating artists will have the option of presenting a short performance, a panel discussion, a workshop or other suitable offering at the discretion of the cohort and the INVERSE team.

What this program offers:

A collaborative and communicative space for artists looking to work in conversation with other artists as they individually research and produce their own work. INVERSE intends to continue to expand its desire of establishing and upholding support structures by offering time and space to think together, offer feedback, holding safe spaces for exchange, and opportunities to share knowledge and resources. The facilitators, Emma & Cynthia, will meet with each artist regularly to provide individual support, as well as meet with the group to provide collective support. The desire is for the cohort to build on this collective support however is useful to the group and each artist’s practice. 

Each artist will be paid for their contributions to the cohort:

$500 for the workshop

$500 for the artist talk

$1,000 PLUS travel, lodging, and per diem for symposium 

A summary of expectations for the cohort May - December 2021 is as follows:

Check-ins: Required bi-monthly check-in meetings with Emma & Cynthia

Workshops: Required monthly workshops offered by artists within cohort

Artist Talks: Required monthly artist talks offered by artists within cohort

Symposium: Required participation in symposium at the Momentary in December 2021